I have a soft spot in my hart for these little birds. They sing all summer at the top of their bushes and stay here all winter long in the freezing cold. This one was digging in the snow and I quickly grabbed the shot before I scared him off.

Giant (yellow headed) Ichneumon wasp - Megarhyssa atrata - Female.
This huge wasp, 6inch+ body, is drilling to deposit her eggs in a live grub or larva in the tree. The eggs hatch and their wasp larva eat the host insect in the tree for the nutrients before they chew their way out of the tree. The female's Ovipositor or tail →